


don't stand on me

by larry_hystereks



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: AU, Being stood up, Best Friends, First Date, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Not youtubers, Slight Anxiety, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-29
Updated: 2017-06-29
Packaged: 2018-11-21 04:11:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11349609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larry_hystereks/pseuds/larry_hystereks
Summary: phil meets a guy that stands him up for their first date.dan, being the best friend he is, takes his place instead.





	don't stand on me

**Author's Note:**

> they aren't youtubers, this entire thing is an AU

“I think I have a date,” Phil says, staring at his phone, reading and rereading the little blue message from the guy he’d been talking to over and over again.

“What?” Dan asks from where he sits next to him on the sofa.

Phil tears his eyes from his phone to look at Dan, who seems to have not really heard him, the other boy typing away on his laptop.

“I have a date,” Phil tries again, this time a bit louder.

It seems to register in Dan’s brain because he stops typing and looks over at Phil, surprise clear on his face.

“A date?” Dan says.

“Yeah.”

“Like with another person?”

Phil groans, chucking a pillow at Dan who blocks it with his hand, snickering at Phil.

“Sorry, sorry,” Dan says chuckling. “With who? Do I know them?”

Phil shakes his head.

“No, I met them through one of those dating apps,” Phil explains, blushing slightly in embarrassment, “Louise downloaded a handful onto my phone the last time we went out with her.”

Dan snorts and rolls his eyes.

“Well let me see them then,” he says, waving his hand in the direction of Phil’s phone, “pull em up.”

Phil bites his bottom lip, suddenly a bit nervous as he scrolls to the person’s profile. He clicks on their first picture and shows his phone to Dan.

Dan’s eyebrows only raise slightly, but he shrugs looking back up at Phil.

“He’s cute,” Dan offers. “Does he seem nice?”

Phil nods.

“Yeah, really nice,” Phil admits. “He was one of the only people that didn’t ask for a picture of my dick either so that’s a plus.”

Dan lets out a laugh and goes back to typing on his computer.

“Men truly are something else,” Dan comments, making Phil snort. “Where you guys gonna go? For your date?”

Phil frowns.

“I dunno,” he says, “I know he likes sushi, so I was thinking that new restaurant that opened downtown? But I don’t know if it’s too fancy for a first date, you know?”

Truth be told he hasn’t been on a real “date” since right after university. And that was only grabbing coffee with a girl he’d run into the day before that thought he was cute. He’d never officially dated before that, and ever since he’d met Dan he’d only had a few one night stands, nothing ever reaching a real relationship.

“You should go,” Dan says. “It’ll send a message that you’re looking for something serious,” Dan pauses his typing, looking at Phil again, “you _are_ looking something for serious, right?”

Phil swallows, nodding.

“Yeah, I think so,” he says. “I’m nearly thirty, I should be, right?”

“There’s a difference between should and want,” Dan explains, “I think if you want to, you should go for it.”

“He  _is_ really nice,” Phil says again.

He looks back at the profile picture, and the man really is more than cute. He was kind too, funny, didn’t run away at Phil’s own odd sense of humor, and they both had a knack for Stephen King novels.

A small part of him thinks that this guy could be too good for him. A tiny little voice saying that there’s no way someone like this, like anyone, could ever like him back romantically.

He ignores those thoughts though, instead opening back up the messenger to send the information for the restaurant over to his potential date, asking if it’s okay.

He gets a response back almost immediately, saying how he’d been dying to try that place.

Phil smiles, worries momentarily pushed aside, as he pulls up the restaurants phone number so he can call to book a reservation.

His bottom lip finds a snug home against his teeth as his heart barrels away in his chest like a tiny hummingbird.

He has a date.

 

 

 

Friday night comes sooner than Phil could mentally prepare himself for.

A week of flirty messages and general discussions that made Phil even more excited to meet this guy in person come to a screeching realization that this date is a test to see if these same conversations can transcend in real life.

It’s beyond nerve wracking, especially when Phil knows how much better he is at speaking through a pre-determined text message, rather than coming up with conversation on the spot.

It reminds him of how nervous he was to meet Dan, someone he got on so well with through texts before meeting him in real life at a small get together at their mutual friend PJ’s house around five years ago.

He’d probably felt the same level of anxiety then, but he remembers how quickly it went away as soon as Dan walked up to him, longer hair than he had now, with a large excited smile on his face as he said his first words out loud to Phil.

Knowing how well things with Dan worked out, gaining himself a best friend, does make him hopeful about his date. And really, he hasn’t felt this way about a potential partner in years and he’s more than excited to be able to go out on a real date with another person, to be romantic again for change of pace.

He just wishes he could pick out an outfit.

“Everything I own is so ugly,” Phil complains as he undoes the buttons of another shirt, trying to pick a new one from his closet.

Dan’s laying on his bed, scrolling away on his phone as he listens to Phil’s complaints.

“No it’s not, you look great,” Dan says.

Phil turns to him and rolls his eyes, looking back to his closet.

“You aren’t even looking,” Phil says, picking out a dark blue button down.

“I know,” Dan says. “You just always look great, it’s unfair really.”

Phil shakes his head with a snort, smiling as he pulls on the blue shirt. He does the buttons, looking at himself in the mirror, seeing Dan looking at him from the bed in its reflection.

“How’s this one?” Phil asks, looking at Dan through the mirror.

He finishes the buttons, turning to face Dan completely.

“Wonderful,” Dan tells him, “just like the last seven outfits.”

Phil sighs.

“Sorry, I just,” Phil says, “I really want this to go well.”

Dan’s eyes soften.

“I know,” he says. “And I’m sure it will. Anyone would be lucky to go on a date with you, Phil.”

Some of the tension in Phil’s shoulders release and he lets out a tiny breath.

“Really?” he asks quietly.

Dan rolls his eyes, sliding himself off the bed and coming to stand in front of Phil. He puts both his hands on Phil’s shoulders, smiling at him.

It’s something that comforts him almost immediately, and he knows Dan’s heard more than enough of his anxieties throughout their years of friendship that he just wants to be there for him.

“Really,” Dan promises, he gives his shoulders a light squeeze before he drops his hands. “Now go before you’re late, and text me updates so I know he’s not like a murderer or seventy-three or something, alright?”

“Okay,” Phil says, taking another deep breath in.

“It’s gonna be fine, Phil,” Dan says again. He starts pushing Phil towards the door, smiling as he does so. “Now go and be back before your curfew, and if things get too crazy mom and dad can always come pick you up.”

Phil giggles and rolls his eyes, Dan laughing as well.

“You’re ridiculous,” Phil says, grabbing his phone and putting it in his pocket as the two boys make their way to the front door.

Dan opens it, ushering Phil out of their flat.

“Bye, honey!” Dan says, smiling wide as he talks in a higher pitched voice. “Be safe and most importantly, have fun!”

Phil laughs again, shaking his head.

“Goodbye, Dan.”

Dan winks at him with a smile, waving as he shuts the door.

Phil collects himself, taking a deep breath and walking down the stairs. As he exits their flat and the first cool breeze of the night hits him when he steps outside, he considers going right back up. 

Sure, Dan might laugh at him but it might be worth the humiliation instead of facing an awkward first date.

No, no, he shakes his head, he has to go. If he doesn’t go now he might never get back out there. The thought of spending the rest of his life alone is enough to send him walking down the pavement and towards the restaurant.

The walk is short and he keeps checking the time to make sure he won’t be late. He’s so beyond nervous, a million and one scenarios playing in his head of every awkward thing that can go wrong.

What if his date is allergic to something on the menu? Or makes fun of him for his outdated hair style? Maybe he’ll find Phil’s smile annoying to look at or find his knack for puns dry and unfunny.

Truthfully, he just hopes he doesn’t trip or break anything.

If he can make out of the first date without completely embarrassing himself and destroying someone else’s property with his uncoordination, he’ll call it a victory.

Phil arrives at the restaurant with five minutes to spare, walking through the entrance and wiping the nervous sweat from his palms onto his pants. He doesn’t see his date anywhere so in lieu of standing around with nothing to do he tells the hostess his name and she leads him away to a table.

The restaurant is gorgeous, amber lights covering the ceiling giving it a soft glow, the overall interior dark and sleek. He hopes it’s not too romantic for a first date, but there’s truly no going back now as he takes his seat at the table.

He pulls out his phone, checking to see if there’s any messages.

There’s only one from Dan.

_text me when you get there so ik you didnt fall over and die_

_I just got here but no sign of my date yet :(_

Phil types out his message, putting his phone face up on the table so he can see if he gets any notifications right away.

_maybe hes like me_

Dan sends back.

_always 5 mins late_

Phil rolls his eyes and smiles, typing back another response.

_I hope so. I’m super nervous. What if I sent him the wrong address?_

_you didn’t loser. i’m sure he’s on his way just get yourself a drink and calm down_

Phil sighs, knowing Dan’s probably right.

He does have a nagging tendency to overreact before anything ever happens. He really does think the worst before the best could ever happen.

“Hi there!” Phil hears, turning to see a waitress standing there. “Will someone else be dining with you tonight, sir?”

Phil nods.

“Yeah, he’s just running a little late,” Phil explains, hoping his blush isn’t showing.

If the waitress catches it, she doesn’t say anything.

“No worries,” she says. “Would you like me to get you a drink while you wait? Water, a glass of wine?”

“Water is fine for now, thank you.”

He smiles at her, it fading as she turns to leave to fetch him his drink.

He grabs his phone again, frowning when he has no new messages.

_Still no sign :( Should I text him? Maybe something happened._

He watches Dan’s three grey dots on his screen until the reply comes through.

_yeah, i’d text him. maybe he’s lost?_

Phil opens into the dating app immediately, loading their previous conversation and sends a quick message asking if everything was okay.

The waitress returns with his water, thankfully leaving instead of asking how much longer it would be until the other guest arrived.

His leg starts bouncing anxiously as he takes a sip of his water, watching as minutes pass and he receives no reply.

_He didn’t answer :/_

Dan’s reply is immediate.  

_maybe you should come back home we can order pizza and watch a movie_

_What if I leave and he shows up?_

_you’ve waited nearly twenty minutes honestly he doesnt deserve it_

Phil frowns.

_But I feel bad. He could just be late._

_phil please come home_

_I think I should wait a little more :/ I’m sorry._

Phil watches Dan type, the grey dots appearing then disappearing, before his message comes through.

_okay give him 10 more minutes but that’s it_

_Ok Ok. Thanks, Dan._

Phil puts his phone down with a sigh, resisting the urge to bury his face into his hands and let out a great big sob.

He truly should’ve known better, known something like this was too good to be true. He wonders if there was really a cute guy even out there, someone so kind that shared so many of his interests.

He watches the clock count down, sipping his water and ignoring the eyes of his waitress peering at him every time she checks on a nearby table.

A part of him is still holding out, wishing that maybe his date got the name of restaurant wrong, that their train was late, or their bus got a flat tire. That they’re currently rushing here to meet him, already working on their apology for the all the anxiety they put him through.

He sighs, watching another minute go by, knowing he should just get up and leave.

Phil picks up his phone, opening his messages back up to tell Dan that he was right when he feels a warm hand place on the top of his back.

It startles him and he turns, blinking a few times.

“Dan?” he asks in confusion.

“I was almost worried you’d left,” Dan says, shaking his head.

He sits down across from Phil and Phil stares at him, watching as fixes his hair wondering why he’s in a button up shirt.

“What’re you-” Phil starts.

“Oh, great, you made it!” The waitress says, cutting Phil off. “Can I start you with a drink, sir?”  

Dan looks at her and flips over the menu.

“Yeah, sorry about that, train was delayed,” Dan lies smoothly with a large dimpled smile.

He looks back down at the menu, giving her the name of a cocktail then looking back at Phil.

“You want one?” Dan asks.

“Wha-” Phil starts, looking between the waitress and Dan in confusion. “Yeah, sure.”

She smiles, jotting it down and scurrying off the grab their drinks.

“Dan-”

“God, there is so much to choose from,” Dan starts. “I haven’t even heard of half these rolls before.”

“Dan-” Phil tries again.

“Yeah, I know, I’m sure it’s all good,” Dan continues, completely ignoring him, “It better be considering this is the most expensive sushi I’ve ever seen, _jesus christ_ , I’m gonna need to take out another loan.”

“ _Daniel_.”

Dan stops, looking up from his menu with wide eyes.

“Sorry,” he says.

Phil shakes his head.

“What are you doing here?” he asks finally. “Why are you here? And you’re all dressed up? I’ve never even seen that shirt before; when did you get that?”

Dan sets down the menu and lets out a breath.

“You made a reservation for two,” Dan says simply. “So I’m here. I’m your two, or whatever.”

Phil stares at him, unsure of what to say. His mind has been moving at a mile a minute since he got into the restaurant so it’s hard for him to articulate any of the thoughts that he’s actually having into words.

Dan lets out a sigh.

“You’ve been talking about this date the whole week,” he explains, eyes sad, “and you were so excited to come here and try the food, I wasn’t gonna let some dick ruin that for you.”

“You didn’t have to-”

“I know,” Dan interrupts, “I wanted to, okay? I want to be here. With you.”

Phil stares at him, still unsure of whether he should be embarrassed Dan had to rescue him from his failed attempt at dating or happy that Dan showed up so he wasn’t sitting here completely alone anymore.

Dan smiles at him gently, large dimple in his grin.

“Let's just enjoy dinner, okay? This sushi sounds really fucking good.”

Phil lets out a surprised laugh, shaking his head and swallowing.

“Yeah, okay,” he finally says.

“Yeah?” Dan asks.

Phil nods.

“Yeah, that, um, this is okay,” Phil gets out, “and you, um, you look really nice, by the way.”

It doesn’t go unnoticed by Phil the way Dan’s entire face flushes a pretty pink shade, or the way his adam's apple bobs with his nervous swallow.

“Thanks,” Dan says. “You already know how good I think you look, so.”

Phil rolls his eyes as the waitress returns, setting down two very fruity looking cocktails in front of both the boys.

She asks them if they’re ready to order and Dan names a few rolls, Phil still a bit too shocked at the current situation to offer any input.

When she leaves Dan grabs his glass, raising it towards Phil. Phil grabs his own, raising it as well with a hint of confusion on his face.

“To hoping that a certain shitty guy gets hit by a massive bus.”

“Dan!” Phil laughs in surprise, Dan chuckling back it him and lowering his glass.

“Sorry, sorry,” Dan laughs; he re-raises his drink, “to a fun night with my best friend.”

“To best friends that truly are amazing and won’t have to do the dishes for an entire month.”

Dan snorts and they clink glasses, taking their first sip together.

They spend the night talking and laughing, the conversation flowing easier than it ever could have with a near stranger. Phil’s almost grateful his date never showed up, because he doesn’t think another person could make him laugh this much, smile so much, make him feel happier not just on the surface but on the inside too.  

Their dinner is delicious, Dan tries to feed him a piece of sushi across the table but it ends up falling and splattering in a dish of soy sauce, making both boys dissolve into a fit of giggles far too loud for the atmosphere of the room.

Dan says they need dessert and orders them a green tea flavored ice cream to share before Phil even has a chance to argue.

They eat together, spoons clanging together in the bowl every time they go in for a bite, laughing each time it does. It’s gone before they know it, the waitress returning with the bill, Dan grabbing it right before Phil does. 

“What, Dan-”

Dan shakes his head, pulling out his wallet and fishing out a few notes.

“You planned the date, so I’m paying,” Dan says. “I had way too much fun, honestly, you can just pay next time.”

“Next time?” Phil asks, smiling slightly.

He watches as Dan flushes.

“Yeah, like um, dinner, you know, next time.”

“Right, okay,” Phil says, smiling softly at Dan, the other boy tentatively returning it, “next time it is.”

Dan’s smile widens as he stands.

“Ready to go?”

Phil nods, standing as well, not ignoring the way Dan places a hand on his back as they walk out of the restaurant and into the night together.

When they step outside, beginning their walk back towards their flat, Dan shoves his hands deep in his pockets. Even though Phil looks forward, he feels Dan’s eyes on him, coming and going from him back to the road in front of them.

Phil’s unsure what to say himself, but he knows Dan, knows his brain is spinning the same way his own was earlier this evening.

Phil reaches out to slide his hand under Dan’s arm, interlocking their arms together as they walk.

“Phil?”

“Hm?” Phil sounds, looking over to give Dan a reassuring smile.

Dan bites his bottom lip, for a second his own eyes traveling down to Phil’s lips, enough to make Phil’s heart quicken before Dan just shakes his head, his own smile gracing his features.

“Nothing,” he says, smiling at the ground as they walk. “Never mind, everything’s fine.”

Phil smiles wider, tugging himself closer to Dan, unable to feel anything other than overwhelming happiness as they round the corner to their flat.

Phil thinks it’s crazy how much happened in one night, how he’d been so nervous before his date, worried of making a fool of himself and being judged by someone that didn’t even end up showing their face. The biggest part of him thinks how effortless everything was with Dan, how easy it was, how not once was he worried Dan would find something he said or did repulsive, but instead felt a complete amount of ease around him.

He’s supposes he’s always felt this way about Dan, a certain level of comfort that’s always allowed himself to be, well, _himself_.

They arrive at their flat and Dan untangles himself from Phil to pull out their keys.

Phil grabs Dan’s arm, stopping him, Dan giving him a silent questioning look.

Phil moves forward, and for a second it looks like Dan thinks he’s going to kiss him, but instead Phil buries his head into Dan’s neck, arms wrapping tightly around the tops of Dan’s shoulders.

He hears a muffled question of his name against him but ignores it, closing his eyes and holding tighter until Dan finally gets the message and wraps his own arms around Phil’s waist, pulling him flush against his body.

They stand there, outside their apartment, hugging in the middle of the night, Phil unwilling to let go first, with Dan having no signs of letting go either.

They’ve been friends for years, best friends for years, but they never show too much physical affection, only saving it for truly bad days when they know the other needs it.

Now, though, it’s different. It’s different as Phil breathes in the scent of Dan’s shampoo, different as he focuses on the way Dan’s arms feel around his waist, strong and sure.

It’s different, yet completely the same as Phil knows everything to know about the person holding him so tightly, trusts him like he trusts no other person in his life, and loves him endlessly as his best friend.

He doesn’t want to let go, but he starts to pull back anyway, knocking his forehead against Dan’s and leaving it there. Dan keeps his arms on his waist, Phil with his rested behind Dan’s neck. To a passerby, he wonders if it would like they were dancing.

“What was that for?” Dan asks, voice low.

Phil opens his eyes, trying to control himself enough so he doesn’t start crying outside their flat.

“I’m just really grateful that you’re my best friend.”

Dan looks at him and Phil can tell he’s holding back his own tears.

Phil lets out a surprised noise as Dan pulls him back in for another hug, this one just as tight as the last. He feels Dan’s breathing against his neck, muttering words for only Phil’s ears, each one of them making him smile wider and wider.

Phil briefly wonders where they’re supposed to go to from here.

His concerns weaken as Dan’s hand grips tighter onto Phil’s shirt as he pulls him closer, Phil able to feel Dan’s smile, wet with tears against his neck.

Phil closes his eyes, unable to stop smiling himself.

He takes a deep breath in.

He guesses they’ll just have to figure it out together.

 

_fin._

**Author's Note:**

> if phil can get sponned by tinder without ever using them, so can i. 
> 
> also i wanted the ending to be very open-ended so do with that what you will. 
> 
> peep me on twitter @hystereks


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